Engaging Evil (Warriors of Vhast Book 2)

by Cary J Lenehan

  It could be an interesting night.

  ~~~

  Father Christopher

  I am growing very weary. From little girls to women older than me there are the same tales. I listen and tell them all that they have done nothing wrong, their sins are only the little ones that everyone has, things that they do to survive in this hellish place. I absolve them all and tell them that they have done their penance already. The blame lies entirely with their captors. I must be doing the right thing. They arrive with tears in their eyes, but they are leaving with smiles, leaving their tears inside me.

  I must be about finished. I can start a mass soon. Fear, the little girl who is now Theodora’s servant is my last freed girl. She is really from the Brotherhood. She is not even a Christian really, but she doesn’t know that and I am not going to tell her. Telling her she is a lady in waiting to a Princess got her to leave with a smile. He watched her skip back to where Rani and Theodora were and give them one of her little bobs before going up and tugging Theodora’s skirt and asking her a question before racing off somewhere else.

  When he turned back Bianca was seated in front of him. She had a plate of cheese, some salami and pickled onions, and a mug of beer, which she handed to him. He took it gratefully in both hands and took a long draught. It is good ale. I didn’t realise it until I drank, but my throat is very dry. I needed this.

  “You look exhausted,” she said, “and you are going to do a Mass. I know that you were a monk and used to long hours, but hearing these tales has put a look of horror on your face that I have not seen there before. You need food and drink before you collapse. I have brought you my Bible to use. I know that I am Catholic and you are not, but Father, will you hear my confession? If you are too exhausted then I will see you tomorrow. After all, I am not really one of your people.”

  “You are all my people, even Ayesha, if she chooses to talk to me. Three of these women are from Freehold. After we have finished I will show you which ones. They would love to talk with you and be reassured. I can only do so much. I am only a man and they have suffered too much from men. I will hear your confession if you will help me. How is that?” I can feel smug at that. By making it sound like a trade I have made it easier for Bianca.

  She smiled back. “Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. Mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.” The familiar words themselves reassure her and she settled into the comfortable and accustomed routine. I will sleep easier tonight. Christopher listened to Bianca pour out her doubts about herself, her fears of what she had turned into, even her jealousy of all the other women in the room. By the time she had finished, she was crying.

  “My daughter, you have sinned, but you are aware of your sins and you suffer for them. You searched your conscience and did what you had to do. Now look around you.”

  Bianca did as she was told, lifting her tear-soaked face and scanning the room.

  “See how happy these women are. See what has been done for them. I tell you now that none of this would have been possible without you and what you did. I would not say that good can always come from doing evil in the name of good, but in your case it has. This is a mystery and I suspect that neither you nor I are wise enough to understand it. I suggest that you pray on this mystery for the next week before you sleep. Let that be your penance. As for your jealousy…you are a beauty inside and you will someday make someone a loyal, strong and faithful wife. Some of these women are probably only beautiful on the outside. What is there to be jealous of with that? You look at their outside beauty and are jealous, and they look at your inner strength and are envious of you. Who is the winner here?” He absolved her and stood up and stretched before announcing loudly, “I will be performing a Mass now. Some of you may be offended by this. If that is the case I will go elsewhere. What I am going to say is, however, not a mystery, nor is it intended to offend anyone.”

  That is nice. Everyone is urging me to do my Mass here. The cook has even made some bread just for me…it is unleavened and still warm… and she has sent some wine…and she is Hindu…maybe one of her workers has gotten her to do this.

  He went to fetch his equipment and when he returned discovered that the hall had been rearranged. Bianca, of all people, is organising things. She has the benches moved around so that the hall now looked like many of the halls in small villages that were also churches on Sundays. Almost everyone is still here and most are seated. The pagans are up the back…Hulagu and his two girls…I still didn’t have the story of that…a few from the Swamp who must be druids or witches and the Hindus, except for Rani. She is sitting down the front holding hands with Theodora with Fear at their feet. Next are the heathens: Ayesha with the girls from the Caliphate and on the other side of the room is Bianca with the girls from Freehold. The rest are down the front, except for Stefan who has gone to the roof of the house to start the watches and…has that red-headed girl gone with him? I will see them tomorrow. I have decided that, if this is going to be my flock they will not just see me on Krondag, as some villages do, but I will at least give them the chance of a service every day or even more than one. I have the story of St John to preach to today and I think that I have chosen my text carefully. After hearing Bianca’s story of her first use of her Bible and what she had found, this may be a text that will do nicely for tonight. I can blend the two together as an example of the right times and actions.

  He began with some words of welcome and prayers and then rolled into the familiar phrases. He hardly needed Bianca’s text to read from, but he used it anyway. “For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven…”

  I have chosen wisely.

  ~~~

  Ayesha

  “See,” said Ayesha to the women from the Caliphate in their own tongue, after the Mass. “He may not be a Mullah, but he was teaching mostly from the words of Sulieman. Even the Mullahs would approve of what he said. He does not have all of the parts of their holy book, so he only uses the part that we use some of and, although he is wrong in many things, he is always good at giving his sermon. As long as we keep our daily prayers, I think that this priest will be good for our souls with his sermons. He is a holy man. If I am wrong on this then Allah, the Just, will blame me, not you, as I have studied the Qu’ran and you have not.”

  ~~~

  Bianca

  It has been too long. I missed the consolation that Confession and a Mass gives to my soul. No longer do I have what I did to those men hanging over me.

  Bianca went to sleep almost happy for the first time in over a month.

  ~~~

  Hulagu

  When Hulagu found his room, after his watch was over, he discovered that his bed was already occupied. He turned to go elsewhere and heard two deliberate coughs behind him. It looks like my köle are not going to give me a choice…again. I would have thought that they would never want to see another man as long as they lived. I wonder if it would be any good to actually order them out…although I have heard that you should never give an order unless you are sure that it would be obeyed, and with this one I have severe doubts.

  Maybe, if I am lucky, they will just let me sleep.

  ~~~

  Stefan

  It was nice of Bryony to sit through my watch with me, but now it is over she has kept talking all the way to my room. It looks like I am going to have company tonight. I wonder if I should assert myself and, if I don’t now, will I be able to later. Look at Basil. He is looking more than a little stunned. However he also looks and sounds happy. While he was wondering this he realised that Bryony had removed her jerkin, leaving a very see-through chemise, and had turned around to face him.

  Well, my body likes her idea. Let us see what happens next.

  ~~~

  Thord

  With Rani and Theodora in one room, Basil and Astrid in another, Bianca and Father Christopher with one each, and Ayesha and Hulagu in the next two, rooms are running out. That only leaves one room for Stefan and me. Much as
I like the Human, I don’t want to sleep with him and I suspect that Stefan may not sleep alone anyway. I will make my home in the soldier’s barracks, in one of the rooms there. It is likely that I will probably have quieter nights there than anyone in the main house anyway. Too much purring there and, even if the mages are not making the night noisy with other sounds, Theodora snores.

  Chapter XIII

  Ayesha

  Ayesha had almost been the first person awake in the village and after she had undertaken the first two prayers for the day she just moved on to the next task. This morning there is a small crowd outside the mage’s door. Ayesha and Basil decided to enter together and nothing they said would put little Fear off coming in as well. It is worth it to see the look on the faces of the naked women as we all spill in with food and drink.

  “Enough…this we do not need,” said Theodora, for once trying to hold the covers up around her chin as Rani almost hid under them. “Basil. You have admitted that you are really here as my guard. Good. You can be my guard. I am sure Granther will be happy with that. Ayesha. The same applies to you, and Miriam will still know you are doing your job. You both have other things you should be doing now rather than fetch and carry for us. For a start, Basil, today you need to pay attention to Astrid—and only to Astrid—but if she is willing, she can still fix my clothes …but not now. She sews far better than you do. However you are marrying her today and she doesn’t even have a wedding dress. Do you have a man to stand beside you? Ayesha you have women to train—actually you can both do that. But first, let the women of the village know that there will be a wedding. Astrid will probably find that she will be well-dressed by tonight. While we are in the village, little Fear here can do all that we need done. It will give her something to do.”

  Ayesha glanced down. She looks smug, but she is spoiling it by turning and, thinking that the two on the bed won’t see, putting out her tongue at Basil and me. The adults all smiled and Basil and Ayesha took their leave. I am happy with that. Basil muttered that he thought that Astrid could be so happy with this arrangement that she might even decide to keep doing the sewing. He is unsure that he can predict everything that his bride-to-be will do. She is like a cat in so many ways.

  Allah forgive my pride, but the Christian priest is not as good at a call to prayer as I am. “The first Mass today will be straight after breakfast for those that want to come.” The bustle of a day in a busy village has started. If anyone is taking advantage of the changes to sleep-in, then I guarantee it won’t be for long.

  Chapter XIV

  Father Christopher

  As the day started to warm up a little in the pale autumn light Christopher noticed that Dharmal’s body had already gone from where it had hung and the gate to the outside was standing open. Good. The corpse is being buried. The less reminders of the past that are left lying around the village, the better it will be for the women.

  He then noticed that Stefan still had that red-headed woman following him on his heels. Did I see her last night for confession? No, I didn’t…still, she might not be one of mine…I will ask Bianca to have a word with her and see what her intentions are. If she really can smell treachery, and I have heard of others who could, then we will see what she can find out. It looks like the two had spent the night together. I may be beginning to see how differently people move around each other when they are becoming one flesh. Hmm, Hulagu is looking contented and there are smiles on the faces of both of his…what are they? Again, I need to ask Bianca to find out what is happening there. I would have thought that women who had just escaped sexual slavery…well the last thing they would want would be another man. What are their motives? Why would they do it? I wish I knew more about such things but I am sure that I am going to have plenty of chances to find out.

  Just then Bianca came out of the stables, followed by the Khitan. The Khitan had a horse each and, of course, Bianca had three. Christopher smiled to himself. Whoever married the girl had best have a large bed. There was a chance he would have to share it with the horses. Where are they all going before breakfast, and why? He stopped and thought for a moment. Am I the moral conscience for the entire village? Am I the one who will have to keep track of who slept with whom and why they did it? He paused as he turned that over in his mind. Yes I am…I am their priest. That is my job, tending my flock and interceding for them with God and explaining God and His wishes to them if they wish—perhaps even when they did not wish. It seems like over half of the people are Christian, so this is a Christian flock and I am the only priest, of any sort. I will need to make some sort of accommodation with the pagans and heathens, but at present I am the only spiritual advisor here and I am sure that God will want me to care for them all, regardless of their own gods; not push them, but to hope that the others would eventually see the light. Yes, he nodded to himself. That is right.

  ~~~

  Bianca

  Bianca was woken up by someone entering her room. Quickly she pulled one of the blades from the arm sheath that she was wearing and was about to throw it when she realised that it was one of Hulagu’s women—Anahita—the quieter one. She has a look of horror on her face and just stands there looking at the blade about to be thrown. She is not even armed. Bianca put the blade away.

  “You are sleeping without clothes, but you have knives strapped to you—do your people always do that? I thought that you were all soft. Were you expecting to be attacked?”

  “We attacked and killed the last person who slept in this bed. If he had been wearing a weapon we may not have. Not all of our people—” she stopped explaining. I have a right to be grumpy at what just happened. The woman has somehow made me be the one who is defensive. She said, “Now, what do you want? With us it is the custom to knock on a door before entering a room. You are not in a tent now and I suspect you do not just go into someone’s tent without announcing yourself first. I don’t know. I have only slept in the open with Khitan. Close the door.” She began dressing. The girl closed the door, but stayed inside. She must still want to talk. I will stay silent to give her a chance.

  “Are you the one who Hulagu will marry?” she eventually said.

  Bianca smiled. “I doubt it. He has seen my breasts, and they are my best assets, and he looked past them as if I were his sister. He seems to have adopted me into the clans somehow. That is fine with me, I have never had a family and he is a good brother…Now then, seeing that I am now his sister, what do you want from him? He says that he cannot marry you, but I presume that one or both of you just slept with him. Do you just want to rut with him? If he finds the one he wants to marry, will you try and stop him?”

  “We are his köle, his…slaves. Of course we sleep with him if he wants it…and last night he wanted it when we showed him that he did. He had just been through a battle; who does not want to celebrate life after there has been death?” She smiled. “Didn’t you want to? We know we cannot marry him. He is of the wrong clan. But we will help him find a wife, just as he will help us find husbands. In the meantime we enjoy ourselves. Do your people only make love with their wives? Are you shocked because there are two of us? Would you prefer that only one of us slept with him? Where then would the other sleep? With you…his sister? Do you want one of us?”

  She looks more than a bit confused. I feel more than a bit that way. “If you wish to share my bed you can if it gets too crowded in his…but it will only be sharing a bed. I don’t think that I am interested in your body, except that I wish I had it instead of mine,” both girls smiled at that, “but I am still a virgin…Now, apart from the fact that we need to be up, why are you here?”

  “Hulagu sent me to you. He said that last night you saw your priest and were purified your way. Now, before the day starts and we might have to fight again, he wants us all to be purified in the way of the tents.”

  Bianca nodded. I knew that I would see fires soon. By now she was dressed. All of the blades she had worn naked were now hidden, but she was now picki
ng up a belt and adding a shortsword and more knives, including in her boots.

  Bianca saw Anahita’s eyes going over her knives. “This is all I can do in a fight, throw knives and sort of fight with them—so I carry lots of them. I am not very good—yet—but I am getting better with them…” she slapped her side where the shortsword hung, “and Basil is showing me how to use this. Hulagu says that he will try to teach me how to use a mace, but until he does, all I have are knives.” She looked around. I think that I have everything I need. “Well, let us go then and light a few fires.”

  They went down to the stables to find Hulagu and Kãhina already saddling horses. “I suspect that the horses may not get much work here,” he said. “We will not be going far at all today, but we need to take every chance we can to exercise them.”